eggs and human sexuality

We inhabit a culture that is obsessed with sex. In our modern world, sexual imagery dances across our screens, fills the pages of our novels and invades the imaginative world of our children. Archbishop Justin Welby has rightly observed that we are living through a time of ‘sexual revolution’.

Some aspects of this revolution have been remarkably positive - we are more ready to be honest about the struggles of being created ‘sexual’ in a fallen world. And we have been rightly challenged when the Church has acted judgmentally or with prejudice against those whose behaviour falls short of its teaching.

But there is growing recognition of the negative fall-out of this revolution too. According to the British Social Attitudes Survey:

only half of those who believed otherwise 25 years ago now believe a couple should marry before having children,

half of all births (47.5%) are outside of marriage,

3 million children are in single-parent households – mainly with the mother, and

record numbers of people (2.5 million) in the age bracket 45-64 now find themselves living alone.

As we drift further into uncharted moral territory it seems clear that the full consequences of the sexual revolution have yet to be witnessed, especially in terms of inequalities imposed on children.

In the light of this, Christians are discovering a new confidence and deepening sense of conviction that biblical teaching on the ordering of our sexual interests really is good news.

The Christian faith celebrates sex as God’s good gift, to be ordered in line with His purposes for human flourishing. Intimate sexual activity is given for marriage between a man and a woman bound together in the covenant of marriage and committed to the nurture of their children.

Of course, in all kinds of ways, we all fall short of that ideal. Most recently the Church has been considering the issues raised by those who experience attraction to both sexes (bisexual) or solely to their own (homosexual). For them the call to self-denial implied by the biblical ideal can seem harsh – especially in a world of entitlement and self-gratification.

We believe however that for those who freely and courageously respond, the Christian call to sexual holiness brings life. And it challenges all of us to a renewed commitment to promoting and sustaining Christian marriage as well.

But current discussions taking place in the Church are not just about same-sex attraction. They involve larger and deeper questions about the nature of male and female, the meaning of the ‘good’ life, and the conditions for human flourishing. And ultimately they are about the authority of the Bible in the life of the Church.

With this in mind we believe that, as we hold to our convictions, the historic teaching of the faith will prove to be good and life giving- not only for ourselves but for everybody. For the vulnerable, for our children and for the nation as a whole.

The resources on this website will equip those who want to learn more about the current conversations in the Church about human sexuality. They contain theological analysis of the key questions, papers and reports relating to frequently asked questions and, importantly, we listen to the voices of those who struggle with same sex attractions themselves. E.g. Living Out.